And here I am, some two years later, having joined Lily Shippen back in 2020.
Let’s go back to 2020 – a dark period for us all, as the world we knew tilted and changed forever. And that change affected me, as I found myself redundant and out of work for the first time in my career. So, I did what I had to do in that situation; I took the change of circumstances as an opportunity. I looked at the businesses I admired within my field and approached them directly. I had conversations; I met with colleagues in the industry, and that included the awesome Lily Shippen.
Lily reacted quickly and decisively to my approach. We had an initial call within an hour of my contacting her; we had a face-to-face meeting scheduled within a few days. She came down to London to meet with me, and from that very first meeting, it was clear that this was the absolute path I had to follow. I counsel my candidates (regardless of their length of experience) to trust their instincts. I was now following my own advice.
And so began my journey with Lily Shippen in 2020. Joining Lily and Emma (yes, at that point, there were just the three of us), I was based in London, and they were up in Manchester. My remit was to build the London office, something I relished given my little (not so little now) black book of trusted candidates, clients, and contacts. Move forward two years, and we have a team of twelve, with larger teams in both locations and working across the UK and internationally. We have branched out into HR, a very busy and valuable function within Lily Shippen, which is busier than ever and continuing to expand.
We have experienced consultants and those entering the recruitment industry for the first time. We have youngsters and oldies, we have singles and married, we have dog lovers and crisp haters, we have loud and outgoing, we have quieter and driven - but we all fit together just fine. In fact, it has been a total revelation to me how a quickly expanding business can work together so well and so cohesively. There is mutual respect regardless of life stages, circumstances, interests, or experience. There are laughs (lots of them), highs and lows (that’s recruitment for you) and lots of support for each other and what we are doing or going through. We are not micromanaged; we are given freedom. We are equipped with the very best tool kit available, and there is always someone on hand to approach (and fix the most basic of issues I encounter sometimes!)
What binds us all together is the innate drive to help others, to exceed expectations and to do our best.
I have no doubt that this exciting journey will continue for us all and that we will have an awesome, successful, and brilliant time doing so.
Life at Lily Shippen rocks; it really does, and that comes across when you talk to us, whether as a candidate, client, contact or just someone needing some advice.
